On Wednesday afternoon, Trevon Phidd, his hands shackled behind him as a result of an arrest hours earlier for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend, was escorted to the witness stand in state Superior Court.

Phidd, 23, had been walking back from a party with Thompson and others on Seaview Avenue early on Jan. 8, 2012, when he said the group was confronted by two men with guns. He was shot in the hand.

"One of the shooters said, `don't run now.' I recognized the voice. It was Heemie," Phidd testified under questioning by Senior Assistant State's Attorney Margaret Kelley. "I made eye contact and I recognized Heemie."

Later, Jones' lawyer, Senior Public Defender Jonathan Demirjian, asked Phidd if he was sure, considering he had also told police the shooter was wearing a mask. "I'm sure," he said.

Two months after the murder, Phidd was arrested for an unrelated robbery.

Phidd attempted to resist questions from the prosecutor supporting her contention the killing of Thompson was gang related. Instead, he said his friends had a "beef" with teens from the other side of town.

"I had a beef 'cause my friends had a beef with kids over nonsense. I was beefing with kids; they were beefing with," he finally explained. "The beefing was about different sides of town."